Residents in the North End have been complaining about an onslaught of Segway riders invading their neighborhood.

“They’re a pain in the butt, especially on like Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays,” said John Gargano. “It creates a nuisance. It creates a hazard.”

That’s why the Boston City Council members voted unanimously to ban Segways from city sidewalks.

Joe Ingram, who’s with a Segway tour company called Boston Glides, says that would push them right into the streets. “It would be a nightmare. I mean keeping everyone together in a line and close and safe and watching their wheels to make sure their wheels don’t tag a car or a curb.”

WBZ-TV’s Christina Hager reports

He says it would put the company out of business. “We already have tours booked through the summer. I don’t know what we’ll do.”

Boston Glides has filed an injunction in federal court to try to block the new law.

Tourists say they hope the Segway tours stick around. “It was really easy, took 2 minutes to learn how to do it, and you can see a lot of the city in a short period of time,” said Gail Lewis who was visiting with her family from Phoenix.

Christina Hager

The residents were there long before the tourists came and they will be there long after the tourists leave, my vote is for the residents! Perhaps the tourists should stop being lazy and try a new concept called….WALKING! I hear its healthy!

Ignorance is on display here in all its glory. Which came first – the wheelchair or the weight? The insensitive healthy don’t stop to contemplate what life is like with Multiple Sclerosis, for example, or that people with one disease like that develop others like Hypothyroidism, Hashimodos, or Diabetes as their immune system further breaks down and causes excessive weight gain. Exercise – when they can barely move. Eat less – except they already do. It’s easier to judge than empathize.

I have two aunts with MS, in wheelchairs, who are overweight. They can’t walk more than a few steps at a time. You want to punish them? You’re a bunch of bigots. Don’t judge people until you know their stories. I bet there is a lot about all of you that isn’t healthy. How many of smoke, drink too much, eat bad, don’t get enough exercise?

This isn’t simply anti-tourist, which is dumb for any city because tourists bring money. This is also anti-elder and anti-handicapped who also use these devices for mobility. What will they ban next – motorized wheelchairs?

The Boston ordinance allows for Segways to be used by those with disabilities, which is also controversial since Segways have not been approved by the FDA as a medical device. In addition to having a questionable safety record, they are silent, heavy and can go 12 mph which makes them a hazard to those with other disabilities.

The American Council of the Blind oppose Segways on sidewalks, even for those with disabilities, and have actively lobbied against any such legislation.

Also, nobody is coming to Boston specifically to ride a Segway. If these tourists take a walking tour or a trolley, they will not just zoom by local businesses, but walk in and spend money. Let them spend their money with a responsible business owner!

@ImposterInChief – Why do you hate science? Scientific facts bother you that much do they? People like you are evidence of why education in this country sucks.. Believing in creationism, and that pollution doesn’t exist, are proof of how far this country has fallen.

I agree one hundred percent. It’s against the law to ride bicycles on sidewalks, and these things are just as bad. I’ve been to this part of Boston, and enjoyed walking through the area, taking my time to see everything and visit several businesses along the way. These people are just LAZY…. Which is part of what’s wrong with this country these days.

Please…the residents were there first, sure. However, it doesn’t do anybody any good to push out tourists in a flagging economy. And for those who say the tourists should walk, why punish the small business?

Sidewalks are designed for pedestrian travel .
As to the wheel – limit the sidewalks to baby strollers, and disability needs..
All other wheels can get a permit for the legal use of the road, or an ordinance violation for misuse of the sidewalk.

Although I’m not a fan of Segways, a total ban on them will be problematic from the standpoint that such a ban discriminates against people with legitimate walking disabilities. When motor cars were first invented, people probably likewise attempted toget them banned from the streets because they were loud and scared their horses.

Agreed. The Segway was originally designed as a solution for disabled people and happened to appeal to a much wider audience. This will probably go to court and the disabled will be forced to display signs indicative of their status, pointing themselves out as easy targets for crime in the process.

Wrong. The Segway was invented by Dean Kamen as an alternative to the automobile for short distance travel, not as transportation for the handicapped. That does not even make sense. You have to stand up to use it…

BS… I live in Washington DC and see these Segway tourists everywhere. They are a nuisance and I have NEVER seen a handicapped person using one. If someone is genuinely handicapped and needs a device to get around, I think we are all sympathetic, but 99% of the users are just tourists who are too lazy to walk or bicycle. I hope DC bans ’em too.

In DC, the Segways don’t bother me so much. It is the rickshaws that need to go! That, or they need to ban buses and vendor parking on 15th street. 15th can’t take anymore traffic during rush hour. Don’t even get me started on the bikers. I think what they are doing is great, but they can’t expect cars to treat them the same unless they follow all rules of the road, which includes not riding between cars, stopping at stop signs and not going on a red light! I saw a bus take out a bike messenger on 15th last week….the bus was getting over and didnt’ see the guy on the bike speeding through traffic in between the cars. Lucklily, his bike got the worst of it!

Also, I should check, but I wonder if DC allows the Segways on sidewalks. I know bikers will get a ticket if they are found riding on the sidewalk in DC.

Kelly is COMPLETELY correct. I also live in city-center DC, and walk to work across The Mall every morning & evening. In the evenings, the Segway groups crowd at sidewalk intersection crossings and end up blocking out pedestrians from quickly, efficiently and safely walking. I wish this ban would go into effect in DC as well. These Segway tour companies are as bad as the bike tour companies here in DC; bikes are banned by DC code from sidewalks in downtown DC, yet I ALWAYS see tour company bikes riding on the sidewalks in rush-hour pedestrian traffic. The Segway people do the same thing. When these tour companies learn the law, learn how to apply the law and learn how to inform their patrons of the law as well, then maybe I’d have some simpathy for them. But NOT in this case….drive the Segway tour companies out of business!!

I agree with the residents – OFF THE SIDEWALK!! The person who owns this company obviously did not check with the proper authorities prior to opening his business to iron out any probable issues as important as this one. Unfortunate, but I hope the residents win!!

The USA suffers an of obesity, diabetes, and hypertension. The sidewalks are for pedestrians NOT motorized vehicles! The Segway is an idiotic machine used by those too lazy to walk, or bike, or roller blade, or skate board. Motorized vehicles belong on the street!

THIS IS WHY BOSTON IS NOT TOURISM FRIENDLY. THE GUY IS TRYING TO MAKE HISTORY A LITTLE FUN AND DIFFERENT. ALL MENINO IS LOOKING FOR IS ANOTHER WAY TO COLLECT MONEY FOR ANY PENALTIES. IS IT OK TO TIE UP TRAFFIC IN THE NORTH-END BECAUSE OF TRIPLE PARKING? IS IT OK FOR ALL THE BIKES TO RUN THROUGH THE CITY LIKE THEY OWN THE ROAD? GIVE THE GUY A CHANCE BEFORE HE MOVE ON TO SALEM

Salem is working on banning them too! The same tour operator is there and he’s already angering people with his irresponsible operation. That’s why the Segway company keeps trying to stop him. Wherever he goes, Segways are soon banned.

Bob, “retired people” are not by definition disabled. If you’re legally disabled and need an electric cart to tour Boston, then fine, get a permit. If you’re just retired, the city is not legally required to accommodate you at the inconvenience of others.

When people are in town for business and only have a few hours to see what the city has to offer Segway is a great tour! Also, the city us discriminating by only banning Segway rather than regulating all touring companies. Don’t be afraid of the technology and play the obesity card, it’s a time saver and a fun way to see all that historic Boston has to offer.

Fine, they can see it from the street with the other motorized vehicles and the bicycles, which are also not allowed on the street. Why are we discriminating against the duckboats? Let’s let them on the sidewalk too!

To those in favor of the Segway tours, if the tours had no negative impact on the residents who live their lives in these neighborhoods every day I would have no problem with them. The technology is amazing and I am sure it is a fun way to see a city, and I agree they can be of particular use for those with ill health or disabilities. And yes other problems do still exist such as triple parking etc. However, the reality of it is, Boston is one of the oldest cities in the country and the historic North End one of the oldest parts of the city. As a result, the streets and sidewalks are painfully narrow, winding and crowded. Nobody is discriminating against the tour, by continuing as-is its descriminating against the residents.The North End has a large resident population of senior citizens who have lived their lives here, they enjoy their walks, should they be pushed to the side because of a bunch of rubbernecking tourists who typically (but not always) are in their own world and care very little for those around them? I dont think so. What makes the North End a tourist attraction is its history, its quaint european feel, its narrow streets, open markets and most of all, its residents. 98% of those who do the tours are young, able bodied adults and kids who are either too lazy to walk or are more concerned about the novelty of riding on a segway than actually in taking in the area. And for the pro-segway poster who commented about someone who has little time…really? have you been to Boston? How about the North End? An average person can walk the entire city core in an hour or two and can traverse the North End in mere minutes…this aint NYC or London! Move the tour to the Common or the waterfront, keep it out of the North End!

Seriously? The residents aren’t what makes it a tourist attraction, nor so much the “quaint European feel” or narrow streets per se. It’s the history. Perhaps there is a middle ground solution. It doesn’t sound like one was considered. As an American from “flyover country” too often I’ve been a tourist on vacation, particularly where the attraction is something historic, and I’ve been appalled at the attitude of the locals who despise us tourists, yet at the same time absolutely love fleecing us with inflated prices for lodging and food, as well as specific taxes on those (not a lot of locals pay lodging taxes, but they enjoy the fruits). Similarly, more than once I’ve been at a local non-chain restaurant where locals were charged a different rate (the last time was in the touristy Brown County/Nashville IN).

Oh, and nice vitriol towards “the fat, diabetic, couch-potato” tourists throughout these various replies. Way to stay on point.

Maybe Tommy and the crew can rethink this “ban” to be more like a zoning ordinance. They could come up with different rules for different places, banning the devices from sidewalks in places where they are hazardous and allowing them in others, with appropriate signs or other indications of which is which, and permits for tour operators so we know they understand the rules for groups.

Segway was the worst business flop in fifty years. The inventor found someone dumb enogh to unload his usless machines on to. That buyer promptly killed himself driving a segway off a cliff. They were banned from sidewalks from day one. The tour company knew they were banned from sidewalks.
The segway remains a solution in search of a problem.

More green jobs down the drain…Isn’t Boston / MA where the Kennedy’s stopped a wind farm? In the good ole’ days, if someone was intrusive or offensive, you could just punch them and not worry about anything other than having to handle yourself. Government is not the solution, it is the problem.

Funny we feel the same about you when you come to Florida in the winter and drive slow, blocking our roads! If you are from New England stay home, especially if you are coming to retire/die. Old New Englanders are miserable people, we want more midwesterners to retire down here, they are really a lot nicer people.

Joe – move your business to downtown Oklahoma City. They will welcome you with open arms. Downtown OKC is in the first phase of Project 180 to redo every street downtown. Part of the project is to add bike/alternative vehicle lanes to every street. Plus, you can still ride Segways on the sidewalks. A thousand new residential units will be coming on-line soon adding to the thousand other units recently completed so you could clean up doing leases or rent-to-own deals as people in OKC start to ditch their car. A new downtown streetcar is also under development that will be Segway friendly. Plus, you won’t get taxed to death or regulated out of business.

The longterm residents certainly have every right to complain about the nuisance of these segways. Just please don’t whine or go to the Federal govt with open arms begging for more stimulus dollars when your property taxes get even more astronomical because you see fit to turn away tourist dollars, and jobs in those industries. It might have cost Pres. Ford the state of NY when the Daily News ran the DROP DEAD NY headline but it was the right choice at a time of huge inflation, and high interest rates but NYC saw fit to keep free tuition at its colleges and unbelievable Union contracts for which they are still suffering today. This was a time that NY wasn’t quite GENETICALLY democrat (I define a genetic democrat location as any place where you have more folks living off govt dollars=democrat then you do the folks paying taxes=republican to support those that are unable to contribute to the tax base. Currently half the country pays taxes and the other half lives off them which is why we really are a 50-50 country.)

Margaret Thatcher said it best, Socialism is great until you run out of other peoples money to spend

As a demographic, they don’t. The poster was referring to income taxes, not sales or payroll. And Dems are more likely to be on the receiving end of redistribution than on the giving (what a misnomer, it’s taken by force) end. Voting and “assistance” demographics bear this out. What I can’t understand is how any working person can vote Democrat.

Bicycles and other wheeled vehicles have always been restricted from using sidewalks just putting the wheels side by side doesn’t alter the wheels and they have always known it. Either the segway is safe on the street or it should be restricted to areas built for it’s use. You know the only actual use I could see for the thing was for postoffice delivery but then the larger scale boxes went up allowing a postal employee to down load an entire neighborhood worth of mail at a single point and even that use was gone. Tourists getting to see an entire 15 mile area up close without being worn out during a two hour “walking tour” was a novel idea but it doesn’t really work out with our national infrastructure being primarily car based.

Roads should be for cars. Sidewalks for everything else. It is the only safe solution. I doubt anyone has ever been killed by a Segway on a sidewalk; however, I’m sure many people walking or riding bikes/segways on the road have been run over. Society is actually slipping into a scary state of control. Watch out, freedom is on the decline!

Yes freedom is in a decline but to say roads should be for cars,…well the world is not that simplistic. To be walking down a sidewalk and have 8-15 Segways coming at you can be dangerous. Read the article, some people only have a 2 minute trainnig session on these things. In the old days, everyone would get on a tour bus and take a trip. Another factor is many of these streets are from the time of horse and buggies so the attent of cars on these narrow roads compounds the problem. Oddly the pedestrians don’t want the Segways on the sidewalk because they pose a danger while the Segway riders don’t want to be in the street because the cars pose a danger. Interesting predicament.

I live in Atlanta and these things are all over downtown and the problem is you have to watch for them coming down the side walk. Why should I have to watch for tourist staring up at building zipping down the side walk in ignorant bliss?

This is nothing more than Menino trying to extort more money from a small business man. Democrats do this all the time. Especially in Chicago. Since Obama became President we are seeing more and more shake downs, pay to play, and blatant extortion.
Democrats are the dumbest mammals on the planet. Thugs, Neanderthals and Knuckle draggers.

I think this is awesome, bikes aren’t allowed on the sidewalks so why should segways be? The owner is saying it will be a nightmare if they are on the streets because “keeping everyone together in a line and close and safe and watching their wheels to make sure their wheels don’t tag a car or a curb.” That being said, isn’t the same risk present on the sidewalks except instead of cars it’s pedestrians, trees, and parking meters?

@Otto – FYI I was born and raised in the North End (off Hull St to be precise) for 29 yrs then I relocated to Southie when I got married and been there since for the past 23 yrs, so yes I am from Boston and damn proud of it and I would say I have a first hand vested interest in what happens in my old neighborhood where much of my family still lives. “Beantownbrawler” was a nickname given to me by my 75 yr old trainer (who has since passed) way back in the day when I use to be a boxer. So kindly keep the comments on topic and not aimed at other posters…he who cast the first stone….though I do agree with your comment about the hypocracy of the city in allowing the WWII duck boats

We were tourists in Boston over the marathon weekend. Along with walking a great deal, we went on the Segway tour for fun. It was one of the things that made me think it would be nice to go back to Boston someday. The people who ran the place were nice, and I’m sorry that they are going to lose their business.

By the way, the tour guide pointed out other local businesses that we subsequently went to (and spent money at), which made our trip even better. Most of our tour went to places where there was not a lot of pedestrian traffic.

This is the problem of people not talking to each other; perhaps the residents and the business could have worked out a pathway that everyone would have been relatively happy with.

A similar situation can be found among bicyclists who ride on the streets: riding between cars, cutting in front of them, etc. The problem isn’t the Segway, it’s the Segway rider, using their increased mobility without thinking of the folks who walk. The Segway is a motorized conveyance and can travel significantly faster than a pedestrian; so, it belongs on the street.

Tom Cupp: “The problem isn’t the Segway, it’s the Segway rider, using their increased mobility without thinking of the folks who walk. The Segway is a motorized conveyance and can travel significantly faster than a pedestrian”

Agreed. Unfortunately, when placed on a device that goes fast, they will go fast, never mind the walker or whoever else. Their own self is king.

Again, you miss his point. Individual responsibility is the point. Certainly there are speeders, but your statement would imply that absolutely no one drives the speed limit. It’s sad how much of this country has no sense of individual responsibility and accountability.

I was almost run over by a segway driver. He came whizing up behind me and if I has moved an inch to the left I would have been run over. I am not a young women and I would have been seriously injured. Sidewalks should be for walkers only.

Leave it up to the so called progressives, they just have to ban somehting, that is their greatest joy. Progressives my rear, luddites is more like it. Soon Boston can catch up with San Fran and ban Goldfish too. I mean, after they have banned everything else, what is a good progressive to do?

Got to love it, Libs fighting Libs over Green Technology. Bikes, Scateboards,
rollerskates, Blades,Mopeds should be banned from the sidewalk………..Sooo split the sidewalk……now that would be fun to watch.

Obviously it’s because you are not one of the luddite progressive bunch. They find everything bothersome and need to make it their business. There is no way to make them happy. Soon they will want to regulate and tax the air that we breathe…. oh wait…..

Every medium-sized or larger city in the country has Segways for rent by tourists. I used a Segway with my “midwestern” family when we visited Washington, DC. They are wonderful things, allowing one to travel on the streetscape, but at a pace faster than a walk, and thereby covering more ground and seeing more in the alloted time. This Boston “problem” is the first time I have heard any objection from locals. We have ’em here in Indianapolis – all over the place. I have never heard a complaint. It’s curious — the different attitudes of people and locales. Some clearly are more tolerant of others. I think I heard one of the objectors say Segways are “dangerous”, or implied such… that’s preposterous.

As I don’t live on the street, like Anandar, I have no experience with the public restrooms he describes. It’s good that they have flush toilets and that Anandar is willing to touch the flush handle. Now that… that public restroom flush handle…that’s a dangerous thing. You’re a brave one, Anandar.

I grew up in Cambridge. Now I’m 65, a retired, disabled veteran. I visit Boston every year to see family and walk (limp) around the city sightseeing and visiting my history. I was there 2 weeks ago and came close to being run over on the sidewalk by a speeding herd of Segways. Next visit I’ll carry a cane to defend myself.

Buy yourself a handheld small Taser. When one of these idiots menaces you, zap any metal part of the machine. It will scramble the circuit board controlling the gyro and the jerk will fall flat on his face. Then get the hell out of the area as he tries to figure out what happened to his ‘green machine”. And gets his nose straightened.

The sidewalks in the North End are to narrow to accommodate wheeled and pedestrian traffic, especially when pedestrians walk two and three abreast thinking they are the only ones using the walk, blocking movement for everyone.

Simple solution is to remove street parking on one side and have a designated bike lane. Oh wait, then the vehicle owners will be upset for lack of parking and drivers will be upset because there are Segways preventing them from speeding on narrow roads.

A better solution is to just ban cars in neighborhoods with narrow streets and sidewalks. They are more of a nuisance and dangerous than the Segways. A lot of communities and cities are doing this to make them more pedestrian friendly. But then again, why would Boston be that innovative with its urban planning…..

Boston Gliders babbling Motion for Temporary Restraining Order was denied on the same day it was filed, so please check your facts — misleading!

There have been plenty of accidents too. Reporters just don’t do their homework anymore. Most recently, on Sunday a member of a Boston Gliders Tour was taken away in an ambulance, on a stretcher, in a neckbrace, bleeding, which was confirmed by Boston Fire and Boston EMS…http://www.universalhub.com/2011/segway

Interesting arguement the business owner used – oddly he doesn’t seem to see the very same arguement from the pedestrian side.
While I support the small business owners right to run his business, sidewalks are pedestrian traffic and many cities already don’t allow bicycle traffic on sidewalks for that very reason.

The business owner is just going to have to figure out another, safe, way to maintain his business.

Segway tours are not at all about being too lazy to walk! I was in Boston for the first, and probably only time in my life, and I had 1 1/2 hour to do as much sightseeing as I could. The amount of ground and history I covered in a 1 hour Segway tour beats the pants off what anyone could see walking for the same amount of time. And my guide at Boston Glides was AWESOME! We’ll see how long it takes businesses in the area to start complaining about the sudden lack of tourism on their streets.

There’s too many people now — Need a massive cleansing of some sort. It’s my world and you get over is the nw attitude – Ride the bicycles, the sedwigs- and whatever else turns you onn., The voting officials need to lhead for the jungles, You OK – I’m OK- Just plain B.S- Thank the Good Lord, I’m 72 or I’d be in jail – not bad, free food – free medical, free housing, free transprtation. These AHs meed to get a life and stay home.

I understand that Segways do not belong on a sidewalk but, what about all the tour businesses that will be affected? Isn’t there a “common ground” that can be achieved? I’d hate to see local businesses go under when a little compromise would take care of it.

Useless gov’t banning anything they can so they look busy, yet another violation of our rights. Add it to the list of gov’t violations of our rights:
They violate the 1st Amendment by placing protesters in cages, banning books like “America Deceived II” and censoring the internet.
They violate the 2nd Amendment by confiscating guns.
They violate the 4th and 5th Amendment by molesting airline passengers.
They violate the entire Constitution by starting undeclared wars for foreign countries.
Impeach Obama, vote for Ron Paul.
(Last link of Banned Book):http://www.iuniverse.com/Bookstore/BookDetail.aspx?BookId=SKU-000190526

I can’t believe I spent 2 tours in Iraq so that all the blathering above can go on. I believe in protecting freedom of speech, etc., but you people should quit such childish whining, work on an equitable solution to whatever “problem” these devices pose to the North End, and make sure that you take time to Thank God you live in a place that actually has sidewalks.
Me, personally, I love the North End AND Oklahoma City.

Thank you for your service to our country.
I love the entire country and can’t see how this device causes any “Threat” to anyone.
People need to work together without spending govenment money and politicians hot air on non issues.

seems kinda stupid to ban something like this instead of trying to work together to allow them both to share the sidewalk. Then again it’s probably just some pompous jerk that hates having to share what he percieves as HIS sidewalk….gee people settle down, its not the worse thing that can happen. Yeah bicycles aren’t supposed to be on sidewalks, but you gonna go ticket a little kid for riding his tryke on the sidewalk, or you gonna say ‘no that’s different’ – its not different by any means.

There are segway tours EVERY day in San Francisco where I live, near Fisherman’s Wharf where traffic is robust; the segway formations roll on through the streets along with traffic every day and I’ve never heard of an accident. Come’on Boston tour company – you can lead them through traffic if San Francisco companies can do it safely all day ever day all year around. When it’s raining, the companies even provide wet weather ponchos to the tourists as they roll through the streets in formation. They are just part of the daily landscape for residents.

Why can’t there be civility and friendship in this city?
If there is such a problem in a certain area, can’t the residents or public officials KINDLY just ask the tour company to do tours in a less congested area?
Why ban something that is eco-friendly and brings tourist dollars into the city. The Segway also takes the footprint of one person…unlike bicycles motorized wheelchairs etc…

I guess the problem in this case is that the business owner has been so egregious in terms of how irresponsibly he operates. The Segway corporation has spoken out against in numerous media calling him irresponsible and his operation appalling, because they knew if he continued to operate this would happen. He has responded so belligerently to any feedback that the city council had to take this action. He was also quoted in the Boston Globe as saying he would not obey a law regulating his operation, so this is clearly not a reasonable person or a responsible business.

Danley, it would be easier to believe that you weren’t writing your own comments everywhere if you weren’t so openly hostile to the English language. Maybe you could take a few English courses when your business is shut down. Maybe that’s your silver lining.

I have done a Segway tour in DC and before hand I was skeptical. However, after 5 minutes on the Segway I was a fan. They are fun and definelty a great way to see a city, especially one as historic as Boston I would think. In DC they make you ride in the Bike lanes when there is one, and only ride in side walks when there isnt. That is the best best solution. It would be stupid to force all of the Segways into the streets, unless of course there where bike lanes everywhere.

I know that the segways are convenient and green, as well as fun, and all that, but the people of The North End have already suffered so much compromising of their neighborhood to changes that aren’t fair to them, the people who live and run businesses there. The North End is a great place, but it’s congested enough as it is without people on segways. Boston is a great city to walk around, and we do have a subway system and busses as well.